Velda tells all
She's one of the finest women of all, and she's not family by blood! But she is as much as part of the Harpers as the Harpers themselves. Now, the family's social secretary, Velda Smithfield shares her ups and downs of her life and how the Harpers made her a part of their family. Things are a bit quiet right now, and I am in my new office. I am working on Facebook, the best way I can connect with everyone, (and I daresay I am still quite new at it) and I am like a kid with a brand new toy! Although I still prefer the cell phone to call everyone, I use Facebook to make sure their schedules are still followed. It's something I have done, and have always enjoyed ever since I was first hired all those years ago. I am looking over my new office, and I tell you, everyone, I really love it. Right now, my great niece, Courtney Sue, is helping me pick up some papers that were strewn on the floor. The children are a joy to be around. Sammy and his practical but very sweet nature; his best friend, Courtney Sue, always with a smile; Ellie, shy but loyal; and Jolie, the rough-and-tumble tomboy. I love them all very much. When I say my new office, I mean the new office that my niece, Anyssa, and her husband, Bryan had made up for me when I moved into their home. After Michael had passed away and Wendy moved in with Dylan, I had to have a place, and Anyssa certainly found me a home. No wonder I love her dearly, and have always loved her since she was an infant. Anyssa has had a hard time of it over the years. When she was just five years old, her mother (my sister, Diane) and her father were killed in a most dreadful auto accident. When I heard, I was certainly devastated, but nothing like Anyssa. She was totally destroyed! First her cousin, Chas, a sweeter man who never lived, and then her mother and father. Death certainly knocked her for a loop! Since I was living in Boston at that time (I was hired by Richard and Violet Harper as their social secretary when their first set of twins, Michael and Michelle, were just beginning Junior High), and I could not raise Anyssa, and also due to the wishes of my sister and brother in-law, she was taken in by Diane and Allan's closest friends, Sam and Lahoma Lucas, who were living in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (Allan and Diane had known them from when they lived in Somerset, Illinois) They had a beautiful daughter, Susannah, and I tell you, the seeds of their friendship sprouted from the get-go. Susie adored Anyssa, and she took her all over the neighborhood introducing her to the neighbors and everyone else she chanced to meet. She was tickled pink to have a sister, and she loved her with all her heart. They grew up together all through elementary school. They were virtually inseparable. However, when she began junior high, Anyssa had to go to boarding school. That was also in Diane's will, and Sam, Lahoma and Susie were heartbroken, as I am sure Anyssa was. But the bright side was, that the Lucases visited Anyssa at her school, Plaisance Academy in Chicago, whenever they had the chance. Susie also went as well. In fact, when Anyssa was named Homecoming Queen her senior year, Sam, Lahoma and Susie were all in attendance. Anyssa had also taken some advance placement classes, which explained why she transferred to Harper Academy. (I paid all the years that Anyssa was in school) Anyssa was still adrift, and then she met a girl named Courtney Harrison, and those two bonded as well, although there was always memories of her sister, Susie. Then, happily, Anyssa went to Northwestern University, and lo and behold, she reconnected with her beloved sister, Susie. I tell you, the reunion had to have been noisy! They shared a dorm, and both were set on the same career path. Anyssa's parents, as well as Sam, had always been wanting Nyssa to be a lawyer, and it was amazing that she went through all that, as well as Susie. In fact, one of Anyssa's old law professors, Janet Vanderwerf, told me that when it came to mock trials, Susie and Anyssa were her stars. They had a thorough grasp of the law, given they grew up together and they were often learning at Sam's knee. Then, some years later, after they graduated college, and law school, Susie and Anyssa had been apart for a time, then Susie moved to Somerset, where she lives presently, and then while Anyssa had been visiting Chicago, to finalize a land sale (of Diane's old mansion on Sheridan Road, which our parents left for her), she and Susie reconnected, and they had been together ever since. With one slight bump when that evil witch Molly Wainwright tried to drive a wedge between those two. However, you cannot keep a good team down, and Susie and Anyssa were bonded like steel, and not even that wicked old Molly could win that one! Not long after that, Susie had a major heart attack. Of course, Anyssa and I just had to be at her bedside, as did Dylan, Alex, Sheila and several others of us. She was family to us, and Anyssa couldn't bear it that something had happened to her best friend and her sister. Susie recovered nicely, but she had to wear a pacemaker. One black day though, she had a bad time and someone tried to frame her for someone's murder. A woman named Mary Watson was dead, and it was believed that Susie might have done it. However, when Susie was found, she was also unconscious. It was later revealed that her pacemaker had failed and she was out cold. A wicked individual named Del Henderson tried to frame her for the crime; by breaking a figurine and placing the broken artwork in Susie's hands. (Del slipped on a frozen fire escape during a freezing rain storm and died, he is not missed at all!) However, it was proven that she hadn't killed her due to her being passed out due to her pacemaker malfunctioning. A man named Bernard Kendrick accidentally had killed Mary. He's getting the help he needed, and he wasn't charged, as the death was purely accidental. Oh my, though, we were worried that Susie's life would have been over. Thankfully, it wasn't. She was spared, and she was safe. She then adopted Ellen (nee Gina, Mary's former adopted daughter) and is now giving her a life. Romance has also been in my life for a while now. I am in a long distance relationship with a gentleman named Alexander Fenwick. He was once Peter Delaney's butler, and is now the butler of George Cleypool. I met him when I first went to Somerset, and we just clicked immediately. He is a wonderful man, and he owns a tea shop in downtown Somerset. He's a joy and I really do love him! He actually escorted me when Anyssa and Bryan got married. Now THAT was a story! Anyssa had always wanted Susie to be in her wedding, but since she had just gotten over her heart attack, she could not travel. So, my undaunted niece, known for her impetuousness, a trait she received from her mother, packed up the whole wedding, every stick of it, laces, veils and all, and brought it RIGHT to Somerset, where Susie could be attending it! That is my niece all over. She thinks of the people she loves most and moves heaven and earth to make sure they are happy. Dylan has a major place in my heart as well. Although he and I are not blood (his family adopted me when Anyssa was adopted), I was with him through most of his trials. I helped watch him when he was a baby. (He lived here with his paternal grandparents while his parents were having their issues ironed out.) He was always happy when he was with his grandparents. He loved his grandma Violet, and he would always be talking with his wise grandfather. But his ties with his cousin (now sister), Sheila was without peer. Much like his father and his aunt Michelle, who were fraternal twins; it turned out that Sheila and Dylan had bonded instantly. They were born on the same day, although at different hospitals, and from that point on, the two of them played together, napped together, ate together, and just were each other's best friends. It was later revealed that they are siblings, whose mother is Michelle and a former bandmate of hers, Craig Schneider. Sam and Lahoma consider Sheila and Dylan as part of their family too, which is something special. The Lucases also became a part of the wider Harper family and we all love them. My life has been an interesting ride and I am so pleased to be a part of it! I love the Harpers and they love me too. Even when I remind them constantly of their schedules! Category:Episodes from a character's view Category:Episodes